1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to display and input devices, and more specifically to driving and receiving data from one or more touch screen devices.
2. Background Information
As electronic systems become more complicated, the limitations of traditional “button-centric” remote control units are becoming increasingly apparent. To partially address this issue, many systems now interoperate with some sort of touch screen units that include a touch sensitive liquid crystal display (LCD) to display menus, selectable icons, status information, and/or other graphics. Such touch screen units are often configured to be located some distance from the rest of the system, thereby operating as remote controls. For example, many audio/video (A/V) systems and home control/automation systems employ remote wall-mount, table-top, or handheld touch screen units to control the system or display status information from the system.
While the use of touch screen units often improves the user experience, conventional touch screen units generally are quite complex and accordingly costly. The high cost of touch screen units has limited their use, such that only very high-end systems typically employ a large number of touch screen units. Much of the complexity and cost of touch screen units is due to the typical inclusion of a general-purpose computer in each touch screen unit. In conventional configurations, a general-purpose computer is often used to receive a non-graphics data signal from an external device, and in response, generate a graphics signal to drive the LCD of the touch screen unit. Further, in many conventional configurations, the general-purpose computer also processes touch location information and converts it to commands understandable to external devices. To provide these functions, most conventional systems simply bear the cost of having a general-purpose computer in each touch screen unit.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved system and method that facilitates the use of touch screens, yet addresses the shortcomings and limitations of conventional techniques.